Opening Statements

Today, Rep. Trent Kelly (R-MS), Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel, made the following remarks, as prepared for delivery, on the Subcommittee's hearing titled "Overview of the Annual Report on Sexual Harassment and Violence at the Military Service Academies."

First, I wish to congratulate Rep Speier on becoming the new Chairwoman of the Military Personnel Subcommittee and I join Ms. Speier in welcoming our fellow Members to the subcommittee. I look forward to working with you all on the issues impacting our service members and their families.

I am very troubled by the results of this year's annual report on sexual harassment and violence at the military service academies. Just as the Nation continues to struggle with an increase in sexual violence, it is clear that the military and our Service Academies are not immune from this crisis.

Every cadet and midshipman is told from day one that they must rely on each other in order to succeed at the Academy. The vast majority of cadets and midshipmen treat each other with dignity and respect and go on to distinguished careers in the military. However, when a cadet or midshipman preys on another through sexual assault or harassment, the betrayal is profound, and shakes the institution to its core. These horrific crimes not only deeply impact the victim-- they do wide-ranging damage to the entire academy.

The academies have put enormous resources and attention toward improving sexual assault prevention and response. Nonetheless, the problem seems to be getting worse. While this is a multi-faceted and difficult issue, one thing is clear: the results of this survey are unacceptable and the leadership of the military service academies must re-double their efforts in order to fix this.

Therefore, I look forward to hearing from both of our panels today about how to improve sexual assault prevention and response. I am particularly interested to hear from the Superintendents about their plans to address this increase in prevalence. I am interested to hear more about efforts to enhance pre-admission screening in order to accurately identify candidates who have character issues that may preclude their admission. I would also like to hear more about how the academies are improving prevention and intervention efforts to ensure they resonate with young cadets and midshipmen. Finally, as a former district attorney who has prosecuted sex crimes, I would like to learn more about how the Academies use the judicial and administrative authorities they have to hold perpetrators accountable.

One case of sexual assault, violence or harassment is too many, and one case of sexual assault that is not reported because of systemic problems is unacceptable. I want to hear how each of the Service Academies is proceeding to address this critical issue.

With that, I look forward to hearing from both of our panels, and I yield back.